Westbrook to the Lakers in 2017 is Perfect!

Russell Westbrook heading to the Lakers should wait until the 2017/2018 NBA season and here is why.

Currently the Los Angeles Lakers are in the process of developing young players, who are the core of the team, who also have great athleticism and talent. They are the future of the Lakers. Yes they aren’t superstars, but that doesn’t mean in the future that they can’t turn into superstars.

Let us all take a step back, close our eyes, and imagine what can happen if the Lakers keep their talented young core together, and what can become of them. They could be the next super team because they will have many years of chemistry and development together.

They can be unstoppable!

Russell Westbrook has stated to the Oklahoma City Thunder he is not interested in signing an extension with the franchise. This is most likely due to his former teammate Kevin Durant leaving for the Golden State Warriors.

Westbrook wanting to leave as well, opens the door for so many teams with cap space who can afford to have him on their team.

These list of teams include, the Minnesota Timberwolves, the New York Knicks, the Boston Celtics, the Los Angeles Clippers, and the Los Angeles Lakers.

Russell has one year left on his contract and he wants to be on a team where he can continue to have a chance to compete and win a title, that is realistic.

According to Hannah Kulik of Lakers Nation, she believes Westbrook is the most realistic free agent target for the Lakers in years.

One team in particular that has been in the mix of a lot of talks about acquiring Westbrook in next years free agency is the Los Angeles Lakers.

Many critics are saying that they should get him in a trade, however that is a not the ideal situation for the Lakers franchise, because they will lose all their young assets and have to start from scratch once again.

If the Lakers were to acquire Westbrook in a trade they would have to get rid of some of their stars such as D’Angelo Russell, Julius Randle, and a future draft pick.

Their best situation for them to acquire Westbrook is they can wait it out next year until free agency, then sign him if no other team acquires him, and they don’t lose any of their young assets, while still landing Westbrook without a trade.

This is their realistic option, to talk to Westbrook, wait until free agency and sign him in free agency because he played college ball in LA and has expressed interest in playing for the Lakers.

The Lakers have been rebuilding their franchise for 3 years, they believe they have all their players for the future now. Theses players have been playing together for two years developing and building chemistry.

Chemistry and development takes time, just look at the Boston Celtics and the way they have rebuilt their franchise.

The Lakers seem to have follow suit a little bit. They have hired a new head coach, acquired young players with great potential talent, and next year they can and will be able to sign Westbrook in free agency, just like the Celtics signed Al Horford.

This way they debilitate the Thunder, while not losing any of their young assets.

This is dangerous for the league and dangerous in a good way for the Lakers.

Oklahoma City Thunder General Manager Sam Presti wants to trade Westbrook, therefore he doesn’t lose both of his superstars for nothing. The Lakers should not fall for the bait in trading anyone especially their young core players. As I mentioned earlier, they need to keep all the players they have and just wait it out until next years free agency period opens up.

They have enough money to pay Westbrook a max contract if they need to and it is near his hometown of Long Beach.

The Lakers have a team of young core players who are the future of the franchise, which include, D’Angelo Russell, Jordan Clarkson, Brandon Ingram, Julius Randle, and Ivica Zubac, along with some veterans to guide them in the right direction.

Next: Lakers Moving In The Right Direction

Add Russell Westbrook to the mix and the Lakers will be back to the playoffs again sooner than later.